When navigating a robotic device through an environment, it may be desirable to avoid collisions with physical objects in the environment. For example, when navigating a robotic device through an indoor environment, it may be desirable to avoid collisions with people, pets, and other moving objects.
In some cases, robotic devices are programmed to avoid collisions by acting in a reactive manner. For example, a robotic device may include an infrared proximity sensor and be programmed to stop or change directions whenever an object is detected within a particular range of the robotic device. Unfortunately, however, in some situations, the robotic device may react too slowly, causing the robotic device to collide with the object. In addition, when navigating within an environment, a robotic device operating in a reactive manner may be unable to estimate a trajectory of a moving object (or an object that could potentially move) and proactively take action to avoid colliding with the object. Improvements are therefore desired.